The Calm And The Storm
by smile1
Summary: A Bellamy/Clarke one parter. Maybe it's time for Clarke to move past Finn? Bellamy thinks so. /Post episode 8 "Day Trip"/ "I can't believe you brought guns back. You gave into him," Finn said in an accusatory tone, referring to Bellamy. "What did he do?" "Nothing," Clarke replied quickly, pulling her arm free. "He didn't do anything," she continued, defending Bellamy.


**Disclaimer: I don't own the TV series _The 100. _All I own is my imagination and the laptop I wrote this on. I am merely borrowing the characters.**_  
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**A/N: **It's been a few months since I've posted anything, but I think I have found my new TV obsession of the moment. More specifically a certain pairing. I didn't even notice the tension between Clarke and Bellamy until a few episodes ago. I'm actually glad that it isn't that obvious yet and that time is being taken. I hope this is a pairing that also will be developed more in the show and not just in our heads and on here. :) I'm also happy that the show is getting a second season, although I am sad to see a few others go. Anyway, this popped in my head and I had to get it out of there. This is the result.

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**The Calm And The Storm**

_There's something beautiful about a storm rolling in…_

Clarke was about to lift her bag of guns and follow Bellamy over to his tent, wanting to keep the weapons close and out of reach until rules had been established. She hadn't even had to argue her point. He simply agreed with a nod, after which he had proposed to store them in one of few tents he had claimed as his own.

She had just managed to distribute the weight evenly between her two arms, not wanting to sling the bag back over her shoulder. It was already slightly throbbing and needed a rest, like the rest of her body. For a fleeting second she considered calling out to Bellamy and asking him to take it, but it would be an out of character thing for her to ask. She and Bellamy were treading lightly on the uneven ground between them and whatever progress they had made today, she didn't want to risk undoing it.

However, the choice was made for Clarke when Finn approached her, almost standing completely upright. "Can I talk to you?" He didn't wait for her to answer, grabbing her by the elbow and gently tugging her towards his tent, _the tent he now shared with Raven._

"I have to drop this off first," Clarke tried, unable to shake off Finn's touch due to the weight she was already carrying.

Bellamy caught the interaction between the two from the corner of his eye, turning around completely only when Clarke's eyes sought him out. The look in them reminded him of panic, although it was more subdued. The way Finn kept his fingers curled around the blonde's elbow annoyed him, yet he knew he was being a hypocrite since he knew his personality was considered strong, domineering even, as well.

So he strode over, using big and confident strides, taking the bag from Clarke _before she had to ask._ "Do me a favor, keep your lover's spat down."

Clarke opened her mouth to retort, but Finn pulled her into his tent before she could resist, not bothering to lower the flap behind them, deliberately refusing to comply with Bellamy's request.

Bellamy handed the weapons off to one of his men, finding himself staying within earshot of Finn and Clarke.

"I can't believe you brought guns back. You gave into him," Finn said in an accusatory tone, referring to Bellamy. "What did he do?"

"Nothing," Clarke replied quickly, pulling her arm free. "We just agreed on this. We need to be able to protect ourselves from outside threats. The Grounders. He didn't do anything," she continued, defending Bellamy unknowingly, an action that angered Finn even more.

"So now you're on his side, is that it?"

"We agreed on one thing, Finn, that's it. If anyone puts up a fight, it's me. And I'm offended that-"

"Not for me," Finn cut her short and finally coming to the actual point of their conversation.

Clarke put both hands on her hips and shook her head, fully meeting his gaze for the first time. "We're not doing this. Not here when everyone's listening in." She gestured to the tent's exit with one hand while running the other one through her tousled locks, pulling out some of the knots as she did so.

"Why?" Finn went on, taking no notice of her words. He took a step closer to where she stood. "Why did you just… give in, so quickly?"

"Give in," she repeated the words. "Finn, don't put this on me. You're the one who lied because you thought you could get away with it."

He took another step towards her, closing the already minimal distance between them faster than Clarke had foreseen. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine. I understand my place in this." She backed up a pace and broke eye contact with the boy across from her. "It was one night versus a relationship with a girl you care for. I just don't want to hash it up and keep talking about it. I can't be around you. Not like we were."

"We can still be friends," Finn tried and somewhere Clarke appreciated that, but it was a too idealistic option. "It's hard, Finn. Too hard." She looked at him again, allowing him to read her. "I don't want to."

That's how Raven found them when she entered, standing a few feet from one another and the air thick with tension. "What's going on?"

"I just made sure his stitches were okay. There's no tearing," Clarke directed at Raven, forcing the anguish from her face.

" Clarke," Finn said her name one last time.

But Clarke was already standing by the tent's exit. "Raven, can you check on his stitches from now on? Only get me if it's necessary."

Raven nodded, her eyes on Finn, looking as if she didn't believe anything that was coming from Clarke's mouth. But Clarke didn't care. _She had done enough for the girl_. She left the tent, letting the flap fall closed behind her, although it wasn't as satisfactory as closing a door.

Almost every pair of eyes in the vicinity of the tent behind her was on her. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a second, not needing all the different emotions to influence her any further. She didn't have the luxury of allowing that. Not here. Too many mistakes to be made and weaknesses to be exploited and pounced on.

Still, her knees buckled beneath her, as if mocking her need for self control, but someone grabbed her before she could drop. By the strength behind the sudden move and the steadfastness of the hold, Clarke didn't have to turn her head to know it was Bellamy. _He had caught her before she could fall _once before.

Surprisingly, it was his sister who stood in front of her and did the speaking. The mix of concern and kindness in Octavia's eyes had a calming and steadying effect. "Are you okay?" The girl bit her lip immediately after, almost looking guilty. "Stupid question, huh. I'm not used to being around people," she ranted on, exchanging a look with her brother.

"You're doing fine," Clarke reassured Octavia, even though she didn't know exactly what she had meant with her comment.

Octavia's features softened and she briefly touched her hand to Clarke's shoulder. "I don't know the whole story, but he's an ass and she's a s-"

"Octavia," Bellamy stopped her.

Clarke managed half a smile at the girl before her. She was coming from a good place. "I just need to get some air. More air," she mumbled the last two words.

"I'll save you some food."

Clarke nodded and waited for Octavia to walk off before looking over at Bellamy. "You can let go of me now."

Bellamy let her go, though he kept his hand floating in the air behind her elbow. "Your lover's quarrel is dumb and irrelevant, you know that, right."

Clarke gave him a foul look and he put up his other hand in defense, holding back an amused grin. "Just trying to help."

"Yeah, well, you need to try a little harder," Clarke responded, straightening her shoulders as she began to walk.

She ended up near the edge of camp, far enough to take a moment for herself. A fallen tree provided her with a place to sit, but she chose to sit down on the ground instead, using the tree to rest her back against. It was as comfortable as she was going to get.

Life down here was harder than she had expected, although all she had to go on were the stories that had been passed on from generation to generation and were still told up in the Ark, as well as the artificial images that were based on data the Ark had collected on Earth. Really all the stories and pictures had been were imaginings. Down here there had been no sugar coating.

Besides the physical difficulties there was also the mental one, clutching on to her morality. Things were skewed. And lately she had also felt the added weight of her heart, heavy in its conflict and paint. It was something she had never had to endure before. It was a persistent sensation, ever present and constantly changing.

For a brief period she had found security with Finn. Someone to share her experience with. He had been so open to it all and knew so well who he was. The openness had pulled her in. Still, he had withheld something important from her: Raven. And while she was doing her best to make peace with it, the weight on her heart hadn't eased up yet.

Sighing, she lifted her eyes to the night sky above her, aimlessly drawing figures in the ground with a stick. Whenever her hands were busy drawing, it made her feel just a little better.

It wasn't until after dinner that Bellamy walked over to where Clarke sat. His footsteps almost sounded tentative to her ears as he approached, yet when he sat down on the tree log, he sat close enough to her that if she shifted just a little, she could lean against him. _They were within touching distance._ The same openness Finn possessed, Bellamy lacked, but lately she hadn't seen it as a bad thing. There was mystery behind it, untold stories and unspoken words.

He handed her a bowl with some kind of meat in it, and Clarke turned her head to look at him, taking the bowl while taking him in. _She was the calm while he was the storm._

"You need it after our hike," Bellamy pointed out when she placed the bowl on the other side of her. "It's waste of good food."

"I'll thank Octavia later," Clarke let him know, not paying any mind to his words. It was what frustrated Bellamy about her, although he could also value it at certain moments. He had enough followers. "Someone else _will_ eat it," he reminded her of the reality of their situation.

She shrugged. "They're welcome to it."

Bellamy sighed, running a hand over his face. "Alright, what's up? You're obviously sulking and when Octavia acts like that, there's usually more to it."

"Why do you care?"

"I like my camp to be cohesive." He laced his fingers together for emphasis. "It makes getting things done and giving orders easier."

Clarke snorted. "I don't give a damn about your orders."

Bellamy sighed again, more loudly this time and she heard him shift before he lowered himself on the ground besides her. "Just like the others need me to take control, they need you to keep them calm, motivate them, remind them of why we're here."

"So, basically, you're the bad cop and I'm the good cop."

"You're the yin to my yang, Princess," he returned, smirking as he looked at her.

Clarke looked away, rolling her eyes, although something within her stirred at the hint of flirtation in his voice and the brief glimmer in his eyes. "Did you expect it to be like this? Earth," she changed the subject, hoping it was subtle enough even though Bellamy saw it for what it was. "I hope it would be… better. I feel we deserved that, got owed that."

Bellamy shrugged, looking up at the sky as well. "We make due. It wasn't any different in the Ark. At least we have more freedom here," was the answer he gave her, giving her a glimpse of what he would be like if he spoke more openly and honestly all the time. "So that's it? That's the reason why you're hiding out and being gloomy." He shifted, stretching out his right leg so that it was lightly pressed against hers. "Are you sure you're not seeing things through bleaker colored glasses cause of what happened?"

"You don't know what happened."

"I think I've heard enough, but if you want to spell it out for me… go ahead." He gestured at the space in front of them before crossing his arms.

"This isn't a place for love anyway," Clarke rationalized it, mostly to herself. "Too ugly. The most appealing thing of it all I was floating in the middle of," she referred to the sky above them.

Bellamy chuckled, unable to hold back. "You're bitter," he stated. "Sometimes sex is just sex, Princess."

Clarke looked at him before dropping her eyes to the ground. She had stopped drawing figures in it. "Yeah, well, sometimes it isn't."

Bellamy stayed silent for a few minutes, watching her as the girl who was usually so feisty and strong sat next to him with slumped shoulders and her eyes down.

"So Spacewalker did a number on you. I don't know what you would see in him, in the first place. He's weak, a liar-"

"Like you don't lie," she directed at him.

"I never pretended to be better than I really am. We all have strengths and we all have weaknesses. It's as simple as that."

"If this is you being weak, you definitely need to be less strong." It was meant as a joke, a sign of appreciation from her side, _but there was more to the weight it held. _

"This was a one off deal," Bellamy replied, although his tone was light and his eyes showing her things she couldn't place. _Not yet._

"Or," Clarke started while reaching over to pick up the bowl of food he had brought her, "you're doing what I asked and you're trying harder."

Bellamy met her eyes, noticing how the lines around them disappeared as she revealed a smile. "Just eat," he told her, looking back up at the sky.

As Clarke took the first bite of her food, she leaned into him a little. Bellamy felt it. It was a bold move, but one that made him smirk and stay seated beside her just a little longer.

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**Please review? **Please be kind and review? I learn from my mistakes and also use this as a way to practice my writing, so comments and critique are more than welcome. I hope you enjoyed this read as much as I did writing it. Recently I also discovered some good stories on here, so I'll definitely be adding some to my favorite list and going back to review. :)


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